CHAPTER
ONE
1.0 Introduction
1.1 Background to the Study
Working environment plays an important role towards
the worker’s ‘productivity.
Working environment is argued to impact immensely on worker’s’
productivity either towards negative or
the positive outcomes (Chandrasekar2001).
Every organization, either big or small
is set up mainly for the attainment of some goals and objectives. People are therefore organized because there
are certain common tasks to be performed or goals to be achieved. Thus, it become very imperative to create a
conducive atmosphere in the work environment in order to attain the maximum
productivity of workers employed. That
is to say both human and materials resources have to be well managed in order
to attain the desire result of the organization.
Many
factors could be linked or responsible for worker’s effectiveness in an
industrial organization. These ranges
from working condition, cultural effect, work incentive, physical fitness,
environmental factors, skill and many others.
However conducive work environment plays a very important and prominent
role in the effectiveness of workers despite the barriers that affects the productivity
of workers in any organizations.
The
effect of work environment enables the workers to be more effective in the productivity
of their allotted task. Works
environment can also be described as organization climate, which is somewhat
like personality of a person. The
perceptions which people have of that climate produce its images in their minds
some organization are bustling and effective, while some are easygoing some are
quite human and other are hard and cold.
It
is important to know the impression workers have of the organization
environment with which they work, it also imperative to know the extent to
which people are treated as human beings rather than cogs in a machine. It is logical to expect that not all
individual will have the same view of that environment. Some will see it as authorities and not
conducive while others may see it as democratic and conclusive.
Industrial
workers are mostly eager to get the best type of work environment in terms of
health and safety, salary, first aid and favourable leadership style in order
to meet their ends and sustain a living.
Workers also want to maximize their income and not production
capacity. This is why it become very
necessary to create a conducive worker environment to ensure the effectiveness
of the workers
1.2 Statement of the Problem
Workers are
discouraged if their conditions are not improved and as such they are not motivated
and satisfied to bring out their best in the discharge of their duties. As a result of the ineffectiveness of the
workers in industrial work place our country is lagging behind a lot when to
other advanced countries. Some of these problems are;
Ø Non-availability
of protective equipment in cases for workers.
Ø Non-availability
of five precautions in cases of fire outbreak.
Ø Non-availability
of health care facilities such as clinic to take care of worker’s health
Ø Lack
of motivation is also an identified problem where worker’s are not being
motivated.
There are also
problem of work related injuries and illness, which events or exposures in the
environment that caused or contributes to the condition or significantly,
aggravated a pre-existing condition.
Records able cases
include work-related injuries and illness hat result in death, loss of
consciousness, day away from work, significant work related injustices or
illness that are diagnosed by a physician on other licensed health care,
chronic irreversible diseases, any fractured on cracked bone or a punctured
eardrum, etc.
Occasional illness
also include, skin disease or disorders which illness including the worker’s
skin that are caused by work exposure to chemical, plants or other job
substances examples contact Dermatitis, Eczema or rash caused by primary
irritant blisters chronic ulcer inflammation of the skun, etc.
Respiration
conditions are illness associated with breathing hazardous biological agents,
chemical dust, gasses, vapour or fumes at work.
Examples are silicosis, tuberculosis, occupation asthma, reactics
airways dysfunction lung beryllium disease.
Obstructive pulmonary disease (COOD) hypersensitive peritonitis toxic
inhalation injury such as metal fume fever chronic bronchitis and pneumoconiosis.
Hearing loss: Noise induced loss for records keeping in
charge in hearing threshold relative to the baseline audiogram of an average of
10db or more in either ear at 2.000.3.000 and 4.000. hartez and the worker’s
total level is 25decible (db) or more above the audiometric zero also average
at 2.000.3.000 and 4.000 hartz in the same ear(s).
Other occupation
illness: Examples are heat stroke, heat
exhaustion, heat stress and other effects of environmental heat, freezing
frostbite and other effect of exposure to low temperature, decompression
sickness effect of ionizing radiation (isotopes x-ray) radium effects of no
ionizing radiation (welding flash, ultraviolet rays lesser) anthracic blood
borne pathogenic disease such as AIDS, HIV, Hepatitis B or Hepatitis
Brucellosis, malignant or being tumors histoplasmosis Coccidomycosis. Apart from all the occupational illness and
injuries that effect the productivity of workers in the work environment, there
is loan occupational problem that is inevitable which is the leadership or
supervisory style.
The supervisory or
leadership that is used in work environment would be a leader with an
autocratic of leadership does not wants to know the problem of the workers he
might also have a nonchalant attitude towards the productivity of his
workers. And all these ultimately effect
the effectiveness of his workers in the industrial workplace.
Many scholars have
been so interested in this areas of study.
This was the idea of Danvan (1971) in his view. Research findings indicate that at least, in
pray industrialized societies a democratic style of supervision leadership
achieves better results than a autocratic style. This various problems that effect the work
environment and also the work has to be understood by the management also the
conditions that could enhance their level of productivity capacity.
1.3 Purpose and objectives of the study
The
purpose of this study is to help gain more insight about the effect of worker
environment which is the purposed to be conducive in order for the workers to
carryout their duties effectively.
The
objectives of the study are stated as follows:
i. To
evaluate the effect of non-availability of productive equipment in the productivity
of workers in United Bank of Africa.
ii. To
ascertain whether extensive fire precaution facilities and manual in factories
can induce the falling of better safety among the workers hence improve productivity.
iii. To
determine the effectiveness of health care facilities such as first aid in the
factory and clinic on workers productivity.
iv. To
look indepth into the extent of impact of workers in an industrial organization
like United Bank of Africa.
1.4 Research Question
i.
Does provision of health
facilities motivates workers to higher productivity?
ii.
Does provision of safety
facilities in the workplace induce better security and better productivity?
iii.
Does motivation of workers affect
the in productivity?
iv.
Does non-availability of
protective equipment affect the productivity of workers of United Bank of
Africa
1.5 Research Hypothesis
In
this research work, the following set of hypothesis are to be investigated and
analysed.
i.
H0: Availability
of health facilities motivate workers to higher productivity
H1: Availability
of health facilities motivate worker to higher productivity
ii.
H0: Provision
of safety facilities in the workplace does not induce better security and
better productivity among United Bank of Africa workers.
H1: Provision
of safety facilities in the workplace induce better security and better productivity
among United Bank of Africa workers.
iii.
H0: Inadequate
and inappropriate motivation is not a major factors that affects productivity
in United Bank of Africa
H1: Inadequate
and inappropriate motivation is not a major factors that affects productivity
in United Bank of Africa
1.6 Significance of the Study
This
research or study is motivated by the workers low level of productivity in the
industrial work place which has immensely contributed to the industrial to
perform their allotted task has greatly contributed to the breakdown of many of
our industries in Nigeria. However,
worker environment is seen as an important factors that is responsible for
worker’s productivity. It is when
workers are under a conductive atmosphere and given frings benefits such as
transportation facilities that will enable us to make some possible solution on
these problem and as well improved over industrial sectors and other
establishment as a determinant of workers productivity.
1.7 Scope and Limitation of the Study
The
scope of the study is limited to United Bank of Africa. The research will be conducted on the workers
and workers productivity in an industrial organization like United Bank of
Africa. Some of the departments used for the research are; Laboratory,
Maintenance human resources and account department that constitute the
company. Both male and female workers
will be studied. This will enable us to
understand how conducive the environment is and how it affect the productivity
of the workers in United Bank of Africa (UBA).
The
limitation of the study has not been easy task for any encounters in getting
the management of United Bank of Africa(UBA) to cooperate in giving necessary
approval to carry out this research to the organization based on some reasons
best known to them, there was a lot of delay and restriction.
However,
with many assurance given to them that the research was mainly and purely for
academic purpose and that information collected will be treated in strict
confidence and also with the help of the head of maintenance department and
some of their managers. I was given the
opportunity to carry on with the research.